期刊名称：The Reading Matrix: an international online journal
印刷版ISSN：1533-242X
出版年度：2007
卷号：7
期号：03
出版社：Reading Matrix, Inc.
摘要：This study set out to empirically determine the reliability and validity of the Vocabulary Levels
Tests, both the passive and productive versions. Furthermore, attempt was made to investigate
the nature of the students' vocabulary knowledge with regard to their passive and active
knowledge of the L2 words as a whole and at different word frequency levels. Moreover, the
relationships between these two types of vocabulary knowledge and the learners' proficiency
level and reading comprehension ability were studied. And finally, it was scrutinized if there
were any significant differences between the High and Low proficient learners and also English
majors and non-majors' passive and active vocabularies. Three tests, the Vocabulary Levels Test,
the Productive Version of the Vocabulary Levels Test, and a TOEFL test, were administered to a
group of 76 Iranian undergraduate students majoring in engineering and English Language and
Literature. The results proved the Vocabulary Levels Tests to be reliable and valid tests of
vocabulary size. The learners' passive and active vocabularies were also found to be highly
correlated as a whole and at each separate word-frequency level. Passive vocabulary was always
larger than active vocabulary at all levels; however, the gap between the two increased at lower
word-frequency levels. In addition, there was a high correlation between the learners' vocabulary
knowledge on the one hand and proficiency and reading comprehension ability on the other
hand. It was also found that there was a statistically significant difference between the
vocabulary knowledge of High proficient and Low proficient groups and also between the
English majors and non-majors. The High proficient group and the English majors had greater
passive and active vocabulary knowledge than their corresponding Low proficient group and the
non-majors.
